January Lately

Good morning, everyone! We’ve got another Snow Day today! I know the rest of the east coast is shaking their fist at us Tennessee folks because it hasn’t snowed since Friday and there is very little snow left on the ground. However, the emergency professionals have indicated that it’s unsafe to drive right now and who’s going to question a day off? Not me.

Anyway, my Monday morning blog post is going to take a different turn today. Normally, I post on Mondays with some weekend snapshots. But, considering 98% of my weekend was spent curled up on the couch, I don’t have much to show for it. Instead, I’ll update you on what’s been happening around here as of late.

As always, play along in the comments or link up your own “January Lately” posts to the link-up below!

Reading Lately:

Halfway through this book. I keep getting distracted because I like to research all the people he mentions in his book. Darn you Google for being so accessible and information-filled.

Watching Lately:

I’m on the last and final season and I’m getting emotional that it’s coming to an end. I want all the characters to be my real life friends. Especially Ron Swanson.

Trying Lately:

To stay warm. Aside from my initial jaunt in the snow, I’ve been cooped up at home with multiple layers and multiple heaters on. Call me crazy, but I don’t do well in the cold.

Cooking Lately:

Still doing the whole dump-and-devour thing. Cooking has taken a back seat this month and I’m a-okay with it. As long as I manage to get some veggies in my system, I’m a happy camper.

Eating Lately:

Despite my grocery run to stock up on all the things, we actually ran out of a few items. So on Saturday we ordered a pizza. And Sunday we had Subway for lunch and dinner. Oops. Oh well. You live and you learn.

Drinking Lately:

Snow days call for hot chocolate. The old-school kind. The kind that comes with those fake marshmallows that taste like the marshmallows in Lucky Charms.

Tweeting Lately:

Tweeting about Facebook. Is that even allowed? Is Jack Dorsey going to deactivate my account? Do you like my use of hashtag mid-tweet? And my short URL? I’M A MILLENIAL. (<—except if I’m being honest, I’ll have you know it took me about 15 minutes to figure out how to shorten my URL).

Going Lately:

To Subway. We were there for a total of 10 minutes. Except it took about 10 minutes to put on layers to go out. And then another 10 minutes to remove the layers once we got back home. So it felt like quite an adventure.

Loving Lately:

I’m loving SO many things. You can go check out last week’s Things I’m Loving post. Or head on over to the Things I’m Loving archives and see them all. Love. Love. Lots of love. I love a lot.

Discovering lately:

I have spent the last day or so watching modules and reading up on SEO and how to better optimize my images and blog posts for search engines. I’ve been blogging since 2012, but there’s still so much I don’t know. I really appreciate this program in particular because Robin and Lesly (the masterminds behind it!) go above and beyond to break things down – step-by-step – and then will answer any questions you may have on their Facebook group. I love having a group of people to turn to when I get stuck. Because I get stuck a lot. So this course has been really helpful in my development as a blogger! If you’re interested, you can check them out here.

Smelling Lately:

When the heater is constantly on, my throat and nose have a tendency to get quite dry. Thankfully, we’ve got this diffusing every single night. I love the way it makes our room smell and, more importantly, I love the way it makes me feel right before going to bed and when I wake up in the morning!

Craving Lately:

But, honestly, when am I not craving french fries? Especially the kind that are covered in garlic. YUM.

Question of the Day:

Now it’s your turn! Pick a few “Lately” prompts above to answer below!

Comments

I wish you a Happy New Year !!
Good evening.It is 8:30 pm Japan time http://9th.How do you do?Have you visited Japan?Japan is a small island country.But many wonderful history is still inherited.Please visit my page by all means,http://ryoma2sakamoto.wordpress.com

Greetings from snowy MA. I’m also a teacher and have been blogging since 2012. I started following on Bloglovin’ from the Boost FB group. Nice to meet you! Happy 2017. Stay warm! Spring is about 70ish days away.Kelly recently posted…Ahora 20: Currently

Why haven’t I thought to bust out the hot chocolate for the winter? It’s so cold here right now. That sounds great! You’ve been doing lots of neat things over at your place!Liz Mays recently posted…Sonker, It’s a North Carolina Thing

I enjoyed 10% Happier too. I don’t meditate, but I did start the habit of deep breathing and saying a quick prayer. I’m trying to overcome the bad habit of chewing the inside of my cheek. When I start biting, it’s mindless. When I find myself doing it, it’s because of stress, so I stop, breathe, and pray, asking for peace of mind. It’s working awesome!

I thought of you when it snowed and wondered how you were handling it! Sounds like you are doing just what we Kentuckians do, snuggle up inside as long as you don’t run out of food, lol! Love your ‘lately’ posts!Elizabeth @ Ellie and Elizabeth recently posted…What’s on my bedside table…A Book List and Review

I love hot cocoa!!! And being in Buffalo, NY i can definitely feel ya on the freezing cold weather. I think being in a blanket on my couch is my favorite place to be in this cold weather.Amy recently posted…Why make a Vision Board?

Happy snow day!! We got a foot here in Massachusetts – our first big storm of the season. I love it, especially because my dog loves snow so much 🙂 Enjoy Parks & Rec, it’s truly one of the best shows of all time!! I cried during the last episode because I just wasn’t ready to say goodbye to the characters 🙁Robin recently posted…How I Came to Be a Writer

Oh! I just did a Life Lately post today, too! UH!! LOL… this was me over the weekend, too. though I had to make a trek to bring Buster (our pup) to his other home (we coadopted him with another couple) and my goodness… he looked at my bf and I like “what do you mean, get in this freezing cold car! I can’t believe you wouldn’t warm it up for me!” Yes, our dog is a diva.

Subway would maybe get me out of the apartment too. I love their veggie sammies 🙂

I love this post – and your bit about the hot chocolate marshmallows tasting like Lucky Charms! Just that little bit sent me on a search for some “all charms” Lucky Charms so that I can make hot chocolate with charms for my kids. 🙂 Thanks for the idea!Author Brandi Kennedy recently posted…Monday Minute: Are Photos REALLY That Important?

LOVE Swiss Miss hot cocoa! Takes me back to being a kid! And I’m curious about that book you’re reading. Besides being distracted by wanting to learn more about the people in it, did you like the overall vibe?

We are on day 2 of the snow days here also, but I still had to work. BOO! As for what I’m cooking lately, I made a killer chicken pot pie type thing last night that I’m loving on! 🙂Callie recently posted…Great Blogs You Should Be Following!

The idea is great, the way you do it. I actually was looking for a book you gave me one. Keep on going. You have one new subscriber right here because the way you write really makes me wanna read your blog. Really great!!

What a great idea! I’ve been reading “The Girl in Cabin 10 lately” kinda creepy. I’ve been eating Blue Apron meals lately, pretty yummy. And I’ve been trying to stay dry lately. It is very rainy in California right now.

What a fun post. I’ve been eating lately… we call it “use it or lose it” and it’s cleaning out the fridge/freezer. And, it’s working! I’ve been listening to lately the song, “four dirty paws”. A great song.

I’ve never read 10% Happier, it looks like an interesting book…Hot chocolate is our favorite during the winter months. We also like making floats with them too.Tasheena @ SimplyTasheena.com recently posted…Valentine’s Day Chocolate Covered Pretzels

Those fries look amazing… so that’s what I’m craving now! We have a local restaurant that makes the best salt and vinegar fries with a garlic aioli dipping sauce. Ok, now my mouth is watering! I need to learn to make those at home!

Sometimes you just gotta give in to your cravings! I find that if I don’t, I tend to eat until I actually do. Hahaha 🙂 Better to save myself the trouble of eating my way through my cabinet and just get to what I really want!

Hi! Welcome back! Hope you had a happy vacation. Love this lately post. It’s a wonderful idea and got me thinking of what I’m into these days. Well…let’s see…lately I’ve been baking lots of pastries and bread. Last weekend I made danish pastries that would go into my total fail folder lol. And I dunno, after the holidays I found myself digging deep into the archives of my iPod and listening to old faves like Jack Johnson and Julia Fordham 🙂 Have a happy week!

Oh man I love the south snow days hahaha…thats lucky! I’d take the snow day without question too!
I also always crave fries…they are my favorite!! That book sounds interesting Ill have to check it out!Heather @ Polyglot Jot recently posted…4 Year Anniversary

I LOVE that you’re watching Parks and Rec… that is one of my absolute favorite shows of all time! My best friend started watching it from the beginning recently, and I told her that I was so jealous that she got to watch it for the first time haha! Enjoy!

Snow! I wish we had some more of that over here in Texas! Staying warm and cozy sounds perfect. I love your lately post! Especially the book you’re reading. Glad to know there are other book lovers out there! I love the idea behind your post, looking forward to more!

Love the style of this post! Might have to do this myself! I guess one of my “lately’s” has been spending more time with the kids and doing more activities to get them to learn new things! We’ve started a preschool homeschooling course, going to be jumping into swim lessons and doing a lot more board games lately!Steven Goodwin @ MyFamilyOnABudget recently posted…This New Year’s Resolution: Get Out of Debt

Mine would be “Tired Lately” ~ ugh! Just feeling sluggish this month and hoping I do not get sick; the real flu is going around at my work bad right now 🙁 Need to find my “thing” to get my butt in gear 🙂Michelle Catallo recently posted…Kids In The Kitchen II: Apple & Blueberry Fritters

I’ve been cooking a lot of pasta dishes lately. I have been listening to a lot of nature music lately like ocean sounds and just nature in general lol. I have been craving root beer floats and I had one earlier because I couldn’t take it.

We had a magical weekend in Hoi An, Vietnam. We explored the preserved, ancient city and the beautiful countryside. We met lots of farmers and water buffaloes while roaming around. It was like a living post card fairy tale.The Travel Ninjas recently posted…9 Romantic Things To Do in Bali That Don’t Break the Bank

mmmm, swiss miss cocoa and good food on the stove! sounds like a great weekend to me! I don’t know how you do the Good Seed Bread, though, it is pretty tasty with butter but it is almost a whole meal in a slice with how filling it is!Brandi Puga recently posted…Mother Of The Year Contest – LOST

It sounds like you’ve been having a pretty cosy indoors month! LOVE that photo with you with snow on your head wrapped up warm, and that hot chocolate…. those fries! Yum!Elizabeth recently posted…Curried Butternut Squash Soup

Hey, I love your blog posts. I like how we get to see what you’re up to, very nice way of blogging! I haven’t cooked much of anything today, I ordered Chinese instead. I know it’s bad for me but I was really craving an egg roll earlier. I’ve been listening to Christian music. And for craving, besides the egg roll, I really want home baked cookies because I can never get those in college unless they are the overpriced insomnia cookies lol.Tina recently posted…10 Tips on How to Stay Motivated Even When You Have Setbacks

I love this idea! Such a fun blog post, especially for long “lazy day” stretches. Plus the “eating lately” aspect of this post might encourage me to eat better if I know someone is watching, ha! Though to be honest, I’d take a huge plate of those garlic fries any day!Beth | Adventuring the Great Wide Somewhere recently posted…Getting Lost At the Musée du Louvre

There is nothing like those fake marshmallows! Love them. Glad you are staying warm– it’s freezing in Asheville too and the snow is still everywhere!Julie @ Running in a Skirt recently posted…Makena Rose’s First Snow

I am right there with you trying to stay warm and drinking hot chocolate! I am pretty much over winter already. Love Parks and Recreation! Such a good shoe for some great laughs.Emily recently posted…DIY natural wood shelf

I think that book’s interesting! I’d love to learn more about it. I’ve never watched Parks and Recreation, but I’ve heard so many good things about it. It would be nice to marathon that one of these days!Amanda Love recently posted…15 Photos to Take of Your Kids During Winter

You are a woman after my own heart! I love that hot chocolate with the crunchy marshmallows. And I have both of those essential oils. Going to start the diffuser now.Vicky recently posted…Making the Most of Feeding Time

Here on the West Coast, everything is shut down too, but because of rain. Yes, rain pretty much destroys us. I’m loving what you’re doing lately. I’ve been cooking a lot lately for my blog, my cookbook, and my new subscription service…so that’s pretty much all I’ve been doing lately, except when I play with my son <3

Hi there from NB Canada, I definitely understand the curling up and trying to stay warm thing, Winter has been quite brutal so far this year. Lately I have been watching a disgusting amount of TV, I’ve been cooking lots of chicken dishes & reading the Jack Reacher series.

It’s nice to know that you make an effort to make homecooked meals. I love Swiss Miss, it’s perfect for the winter! I think you’re making me crave for fries too!Carol Cassara recently posted…Joyless eating

Oh yes, sometimes being curled up on a couch with a great book feels like an awesome activity. I’d love to be there too! Wow. There’s so much happening in January. Love your veggies and ever ready to share a craving for french fries.

I love cooking Sweet Potatoes and also Scouse.,..its a great winter dish here in Liverpool…Those chips look tasty 🙂

Feel free to ask any blogging and SEO related Qns, I have been blogging since 2013 but I invested heavily at the start so I have access to some of the best blogging training and mentors in our Industry! 🙂

Yessss, hot chocolate and books! Some of my favourite things! I’ve been looking for more books to read, so I might have to add this one to my list! It looks pretty good to me 🙂 I might have done a quick research on Google and Goodreads 🙂

Parks and Rec is my jam. We don’t have snow days in my part of Texas….occasionally we get icy mornings where we start late. LOL I want to read 10% happier. It’s on my list. I just read The Big Leap and it changed my life.Dia All The Things I Do recently posted…6 Tips For Saying No When You Don’t Like Letting People Down